The present invention relates to an excavation machine and more particularly to an excavation machine which is ideal for hard rock mining and can be readily automated.
There exists in the hard rock mining industry a long felt need for mechanized evacuation techniques to take the place of drill and blast hard rock mining operations. The advantages of mechanized evacuation techniques and their adaptability to automation are well recognized.
Attempts to provide mechanical machines for hard rock mine excavation include road headers, continuous miners and modified versions of tunnel boring machines, or TBMs, as they are often referred to. Unfortunately, too date, these attempts have not been successful. These machines have suffered from maintenance problems, unacceptable bit wear and resulting high excavation costs. In addition, tunnel boring machines are still best suited for excavating long, relatively straight paths and do not have the capability to negotiate the tight turns necessary to follow ore veins.
In addition, these machines have been extremely costly and massive in size, weighing hundreds of metric tons. Lacking the desired mobility and versatility to follow desired mineral veins they are unable to avoid the excavation of rock which does not contain the desired minerals.
The basic object of the present invention is to provide an excavation machine which is relatively inexpensive, is mobile and versatile, is relatively light in weight (weighing no more than eight metric tons including power and control units and equipment for automation) and has the ability to make tight turns in any direction to follow a mineral vein and thereby avoid needless evacuation of undesired rock.
Another object of the invention is to provide an excavation machine for hard rock mining operations which use a cutter and reaming head mounted on a boom with two activator or rocker cylinders and excavates by applying a large impact or crushing cutting force in a repetitive manner, generally known as impact ripping.
Another object of the invention is to provide a xe2x80x9cwalkingxe2x80x9d mining machine with a partial face hard rock cutting reamer working member.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an excavating mining machine with adjustable bits in which operating space is provided to adjust the bits.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide new and improved composition drag bits for hard rock mining.
The present invention is a electro-hydraulic powered machine which can be easily automated and remotely controlled so as to significantly reduce the health and the safety risks associated with hard rock mining operations.